Our Picks:
Stephen Thompson ML
We think Thompson is the far superior kickboxer. He’s a far more technical and precise striker. He has great feints, counters, and footwork. Thompson will match up well against Neal who likes to plod forward and is a relatively low volume fighter. Neal can string together combos pretty well when he has you up against the fence but outside of that his striking is rather simple. With that being said, Neal does have really heavy hands and fight ending power. Thompson should be able to circle out and outpoint Neal. Neal hasn’t fought anyone who is even close to Wonderboy on a technical level. He’s largely fought brawlers who were willing to trade with him. The only guy who didn’t do that against him was Belal, who was able to take him to a decision. Our main concern in this matchup is Wonderboy’s age. He might not be as quick and his reflexes not as sharp at 37. Wonderboy has gotten dropped before and Neal is a dangerous striker. However, he hasn’t really shown much regression or taken much damage throughout his career. Furthermore, Neal isn’t really a 1 punch KO type of guy, he gets his finishes through accumulation of heavy power shots, similar to Costa. For that reason we think Wonderboy should be able to dance circles around Neal, especially as the fight progresses.
Michel Pereira ML
Williams is getting near hype job levels of love. He’s your typical low level power puncher. Both guys are very powerful and athletic and this might sound crazy but we actually think Pereira is the more athletic fighter. Pereira is a bit more of a showman but both guys are capable of hitting hard and have knockout power. Both guys have really questionable cardio, especially Pereira who has shown to gas himself going for flashy superman punches and spinning heel kicks. Williams is predominantly a first round finisher and when fights get out of the first round he slows down a bit. While it isn’t to the extent of Pereira’s, it is rather noticeable. Pereira’s gotten a bit better managing his gas tank after that Connelly loss. Stylistically, Pereira is the better technical fighter by quite a bit. He has better movement on the feet and likes to throw a variety of punches. He throws a tight jab and straight right, has decent clinchwork and mixes in a variety of kicks as well. Pereiras ability to keep opponents guessing with what he’s going to throw. Williams, while also carrying massive power in his hands, has pretty simple striking. He has a nice jab and counter right, and tends to throw looping hooks to close the distance which summarizes the extend to his striking. If Pereira doesn’t fuck around in there he should be able to style on Williams pretty hard. All he has to do is manage his cardio (which looks like hes been doing) and no cartwheel kicks.
Alex Morono ML
Pettis has not looked good in years. He has a tendency to get pressured and not throw much volume either. This will be a pretty big step down in competition for Pettis but it won’t be an easy task. Morono is tough and likes to move forward. We think he will be the busier fighter through all 3 rounds. We give Pettis the speed and technical advantage, but he will be giving up some size against Morono who is the more natural 170 lb fighter. This will be a pretty close fight with a lot of back and forth. Neither guys are really power punchers, but we think Morono will be landing the heavier shots. Pettis has shown he will fold under pressure and accumulated damage so we think Morono does have a slight KO upside. We just don’t think Pettis deserves to be this big of a favorite so we’re putting a little down on Morono.